


Where God's redeemed, their vigils keep

by whenihavetime



Series: Grandpa Joel [6]
Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: AU: Joel lives, F/F, Family, Family Feels, Fluff, JJ is potato, Joel is best grandpa, let Dina and Ellie rest 2k39, my dudes writing babies is HARD, the convos are so one-sided
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:27:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25853593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whenihavetime/pseuds/whenihavetime
Summary: Joel looked over his haul and back to the six-month-old trying his best to crawl.“Jus’ you and me now, kiddo. Ready to party?”JJ happily babbled and hit his hands on the rug, still clasping Ollie in one of them.“We’re in agreement then.”ORJoel babysits, so Ellie and Dina can finally sleep
Relationships: Dina & Joel (The Last of Us), Dina/Ellie (The Last of Us), Ellie & Joel (The Last of Us)
Series: Grandpa Joel [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1824394
Comments: 16
Kudos: 194





	Where God's redeemed, their vigils keep

**Author's Note:**

> Title from the folk song "Wayfaring Stranger," which Ashley and Troy cover for TLOU2 end credits

The sun was just dipping below the horizon when Joel put the finishing touches on his baby-proofed living room. He had taken every blanket in his house and draped them over all the table corners and placed pillows around the perimeter of his rug. (“Isn’t this a little overkill? He can barely crawl,” Maria had said.) Joel wasn’t about to take any chances. 

After JJ’s birth, Ellie and Dina remained in Jackson for a month in case any medical emergencies arose in the early weeks. Plus, it was nice for them to have Shoshana around to give motherly advice. Then, the couple had officially moved into the farmhouse – an endeavor that lasted a full day, from which Joel could still feel phantom back pains. It definitely took some getting used to, not having Ellie a literal backyard away anymore. Sure, the farm was less than an hour’s horse ride away, half that time at a gallop, but gone were their daily lunch breaks and spontaneous guitar jams. They made up for it, though, with weekly visits: Ellie, Dina, and JJ to Jackson on one Saturday, Joel to the farm the next. His and Ellie’s Wednesday movie nights shifted too, except they had to forego the gory films when JJ was there. 

A knock sounded, right as Joel propped up the last pillow. He opened the door to see his guest of the hour. 

“There’s my favorite grandson,” he beamed at the baby in Ellie’s arms, currently chewing on loose strands of her hair. 

Tonight was a special occasion. Now that Dina was weaning JJ, he could spend longer amounts of time away from his mother. That meant more sleepovers with JJ’s extended family, while the first-time mothers could have time for themselves. Joel and Shoshana insisted on it, speaking from experience. Ellie and Dina were hesitant at first to leave JJ – a good sign of their protective instincts – but gave in eventually. They were barely in their twenties and deserved some respite. 

Ellie rolled her eyes. “You got another I don’t know about? Because that’d be news to me.” 

“Oh, yeah, I’ve got tons more.” 

Ellie shook her head, while Dina poked her head around the taller girl’s frame. “Hi, Joel.” 

“Evenin’, Dina,” he replied. 

JJ finally realized his presence, releasing Ellie’s hair and staring at him with wide brown eyes. He seemed to recognize Joel, reaching a pudgy hand toward him with a delighted squeal. 

“Looks like he missed you,” Dina said. 

“All righty, Spud,” Ellie said, passing JJ to him. “Be good for Grandpa Joel, okay?” 

Dina stepped forward to pass him a large duffle bag. “Okay, I’ve packed JJ’s diapers, baby bottle – don’t forget to burp him afterward – pyjamas, blanket, an extra blanket in case he gets cold, pacifier, baby rattle, his favorite bedtime stories – read _Goodnight Moon_ first and _The Very Hungry Caterpillar_ second because he’s fussy like that – oh, and a couple toys are in there, so he’ll be plenty distracted.” 

Joel took a moment to process her words. 

“Dina,” Ellie said, wrapping an arm around her waist. “I think he can handle it. He’s taken care of JJ before.” 

“Not for a whole night! Maybe, we should come back after dinner.”

“Deep breaths, babe.” Ellie held her a little closer. “We promised to have a relaxing evening.” 

Dina placed a hand over Ellie’s on her hip. She exhaled, “I know. I know. Just… a little paranoid, leaving him with someone else.” She glanced up to Joel. “No offence.” 

“None taken. It’s new mom jitters. Perfectly natural,” he reassured. “This lil’ fella and I are in for a fun sleepover, aren’t we?” He used the hand currently supporting JJ to tickle at his belly, which resulted in a giggle that had quickly become Joel’s favorite sound. 

Ellie approached to ruffle JJ’s mop of black hair. “Don’t do anything I would do.” 

“Uh, ain’t it ‘anything I _wouldn’t_ do’?” Joel asked. 

“No, she means what she said,” Dina answered. Her eyes trailed downward and widened. “Oh!” She reached toward Ellie’s jeans. Joel snapped his gaze away. Nope. No thank you. 

“What are you–” Ellie craned her neck to see what she was doing. 

“Ollie!” Suddenly, Dina’s hand (thankfully) came back into view with the little elephant that looked like it had seen better days. “Can’t forget him.” 

JJ made a noise and reached for his favorite toy. Dina placed it in his grasp and gave a quick kiss on his cheek. JJ immediately began to chew on Ollie’s ear. 

Ellie jabbed, “You don’t think Ollie should join us on our date night?” 

“Right, ‘cause nothing screams sexy like walking around with a stuffed elephant in your back pocket.” 

“Dina!” she hissed through her teeth, eyes darting between her girlfriend and Joel, who just pretended not to hear that last comment. 

“Well,” he cleared his throat. “I, uh, hope you have fun plans.” 

“Yup, tonight’s gonna be wild–”

“So,” Ellie loudly interrupted before Dina could do any more damage. “Will you be inviting Esther over later?”

“What?” Joel swore he was going to get verbal whiplash from this conversation alone. 

“For fuck’s sake, old man, don’t be so oblivious.”

“The irony of that statement astounds me,” Dina muttered. Then, she elbowed her. “And, don’t curse!” 

Ellie ignored her. “She’s been over for dinner– What? Ten times in the past month?” 

“Nine,” he grumbled. 

Ellie gave him a pointed look. 

Joel would’ve rubbed the back of his neck if he didn’t have JJ in one arm and a duffle bag in the other. It was true. After he had met the doctor on the night of JJ’s birth, they continued to cross paths. (He suspected Tommy had something to do with it because he kept assigning “important” tasks requiring Joel to visit the clinic that just so happened to be during Esther’s shifts.) 

Two months into this endeavor, Esther was actually the one to ask if he wanted to grab a bite at the Tipsy Bison. It had gone horribly. Seth was still pissy over the black eye Joel gave him and burnt their food, Joel stumbled through any attempt at conversation, and to top it all off, he spilled his drink onto Esther’s lap. After that trainwreck, he had promptly avoided her for a week. Ellie had called him a dumbass. Hey, he was rusty at this. He was last romantically involved with Tess, and that had never been anything serious. Finally, Joel had mustered the courage to ask Esther over for dinner as an apology. The past four months saw an increase in frequency of these meetups, and the rest was history. 

Joel thought highly Esther. She was patient, understanding, and had a curious juxtaposition of a jaded outlook on the world and an optimistic vision of the future. He also enjoyed her sense of humor. So, maybe, he did sort of like her in a more than friendly way. Plus, she was great with JJ when he had his monthly checkups. Speaking of whom, Joel was brought back to the present when the baby shoved Ollie into his face.

“Nah, no Esther tonight. It’s boys’ night in,” he said, trying to avoid a drool-covered elephant in his mouth. 

“When are you gonna get a move on that?” Ellie raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, leave him be,” Dina drawled, tugging at her arm. “We’ll see you two in the morning.” 

Ellie was still laughing as they turned and continued down the street. Joel let out a sigh. He was doing that a lot these days. He turned to look at his grandson again. 

“Let’s get you inside.” 

Joel used his heel to close the door and moved to his living room where he set the duffle down on his couch. Carefully, he placed JJ on his back in the center of his makeshift playpen of pillows and blankets. JJ flipped himself onto his stomach – something he was quickly mastering – and waved his short arms and legs about in an adorable attempt to propel himself forward. He was still working on that first inch of ground to cover. 

Joel took a seat on the couch and started to unpack all of JJ’s things, organizing the baby care items in one pile and the toys and books in another. He looked over his haul and back to the six-month-old trying his best to crawl.

“Jus’ you and me now, kiddo. Ready to party?” 

JJ happily babbled and hit his hands on the rug, still clasping Ollie in one of them. 

“We’re in agreement then.” 

Joel picked up the wooden giraffe he had whittled when JJ was four months old. He held it before the baby’s eyes. JJ reacted with a squeal and another slap on the rug. 

“You think Mr. Giraffe wants to play with Ollie?” 

Another squeal. 

Joel placed the toy right in front of the baby, who eagerly grabbed it with his free hand. Joel had come up with the name in a moment of panic. Dina had looked so touched, both her and JJ staring at the little giraffe with the same wide, brown eyes. When asked, Joel had said the first thing that came to mind. Ellie had scoffed, but he had seen her fond expression, mixed with a twinge of sadness at the memory of simpler times. 

“Bah!” JJ directed to the giraffe. 

“Yeah, I know it’s bad. You can rename ‘im when you’re older.” 

Joel placed some of the other plush toys and building blocks around the playpen to JJ’s delight. He would do his baby-talk to each toy before rolling himself over to reach another. Joel would help move items closer if JJ showed any signs of frustration. Truthfully, it was very entertaining on both their parts. 

The grumbling of his stomach alerted him to the time. Glancing at the clock, it was already an hour later. 

He absentmindedly scratched at his beard. “Looks like it’s time for supper.” He hoisted JJ onto his hip and picked up the baby bottle and rattle. “Let’s get some food in you, ‘kay, kiddo?” 

Joel carried JJ into his kitchen where he placed him into a high chair permanently residing in his home for such occasions. From his fridge, he took out the milk and a tupperware of leftovers. Waiting for both to heat up on the stove, Joel kept JJ distracted with the rattle, each shake accompanied by bubbling laughter. 

“I gotta say you’re a much better audience than Ellie.” 

Another giggle.

“Don’t tell her I said that.” 

After a couple minutes, Joel poured the warm milk into the bottle. JJ let go of Ollie in favor of reaching toward him with a shriek. He had certainly grasped the concept of bottle equals food time. 

“Open up, kiddo.” 

Joel alternated between holding the bottle to his grandson’s lips and eating forkfuls of his own dinner. JJ greedily drank the bottle dry in no time. Afterward, Joel had the messier task of burping him and changing his diaper, which was never a baby’s favorite pastime. 

Once JJ was settled, Joel returned them to the living room where he picked _Goodnight Moon_ from the book pile. He held JJ in his lap and withdrew his reading glasses from his shirt pocket. 

“Oof.” Joel recoiled, as JJ proceeded to hit his hand against the shiny lenses. The lenses currently on his face. “Let’s leave Grandpa Joel’s glasses alone for now. How else can he read to ya?” 

He turned JJ around, so he sat in his lap facing forward. Easily distracted, JJ slapped his hands on the book cover with an energetic “Bah!” Apparently, it was JJ’s favorite syllable. Joel readjusted his glasses and opened to the first page. 

Clearing his throat, “In the great green room, there was a telephone and a red balloon and a picture of a cow jumping over the moon…” 

Two children’s books and several yawns later, Joel carefully lifted his sleeping grandson to rest against his shoulder, as he made his way upstairs. He had made a second crib, which transferred between Joel’s, Shoshana’s, and Jesse’s rooms depending on whose turn it was to babysit. It was less adorned than the first crib he made for the farm, but it would do. When Joel tried to place JJ down, he discovered two tiny fists gripping his shirt. Delicately, he pried the fabric free (JJ was surprisingly strong) and laid him among the warm blankets. Jackson summers were indeed muggy, but the nights still had a slight chill, and Joel wasn’t about to risk JJ catching a cold. 

He placed Ollie beside him and tucked some stray hairs behind his ear. “G’night, JJ.” 

Not wanting to leave him for a second, Joel prepared for bed and cracked open his own book, _Space for Dummies,_ an interesting read, but he wasn’t quite on Ellie’s level. It didn’t help that he kept getting distracted by his grandson’s steady breathing in the crib at the foot of his bed. Sometimes, he couldn’t believe this was real – that he was so lucky to be here, after everything he’s done the past twenty five years. 

By 10:30, Joel put the book aside, shut off his bedside lamp, and with one last assessment of JJ’s slumbering form, he had one of the most relaxing nights in a long time.

* * *

Joel was an early riser. 

Bleariness barely wiped from his eyes, first thing he did was check up on JJ, who was still sound asleep, starfished on the blanket and still holding Ollie. Nodding satisfactorily to himself, Joel went downstairs to fix himself a cup of coffee. After a moment’s pause, he filled a second. Once the caffeine kicked in, he worked on repacking JJ’s duffle. He knew his grandson took after Dina’s tendency to sleep in, so it was a high probability his moms would come collect him before he awakened. 

As though the thought summoned them, Joel heard a knock at the door. He was greeted to the sight of a very refreshed Ellie and a sleepy-looking Dina. Yup, just like JJ. 

“Mornin’,” he said, stepping aside to let them inside.

“‘Sup, Joel,” Ellie replied at the same time as Dina’s incoherent grunt. 

As Dina passed by, Joel offered her the second mug of coffee, which she eagerly chugged. She shot him a thankful look. 

Ellie made a face. “I can’t believe you drink that shit now.” 

Dina appeared unamused. “Not everyone is ready to run a full patrol at the crack of dawn.” 

“Joel can, but he still drinks that dirt juice.” 

“Hey! Joel, back me up here.” 

“I’m stayin’ out o’ this.” He shook his head and quickly changed the subject, “JJ’s upstairs if you wanna get ‘im now.” 

“Yup, I’m on it,” Dina said. 

When Dina left, Joel and Ellie stood awkwardly in the hallway, neither of them knowing what to say first. 

“I, uh,” he started. “I have JJ’s stuff ready.”

“Oh, great, thanks.” 

Joel led her to it where she began to rummage through it, ensuring everything was accounted for. 

“You and Dina have a nice night?”

Ellie chuckled, “You bet we did.” 

He choked on his sip of coffee. “Oh, well, I didn’t– that’s, uh–” 

She glanced up with a confused look on her face that quickly morphed to realization at his implication. This time, she full-on laughed, “No, old man, I meant we slept like fucking rocks. After so many nights of waking up to a hungry JJ? We needed a good night’s rest.” 

“Oh.” Joel felt flush. He coughed the last drops of coffee from his throat. “I had a quiet night with him.” 

“Lucky bastard,” Ellie muttered. “My own son gives you an easier time than anyone else.” 

“JJ takes pity on this old man. You could learn a thing or two from him.”

“Is that so?”

“Yup, wise beyond his years.” 

She hummed, “He should spend more time with you then. Maybe, he’ll make you less of an asshole.” 

“Hey, no cursing” Dina scolded, as she descended the stairs, JJ blinking at them from her arms. 

“Pshh, he can’t understand–” Ellie shut up with one look from Dina. “Right, sorry, Spud.” 

“You got his stuff?” 

Ellie lifted the duffle onto her shoulder. “All packed.” 

“You headin’ back now?” Joel asked.

“No, we’re gonna spend some time at Jesse’s and return home after lunch,” Ellie said. She walked over to JJ and brought her hands up to his chubby cheeks. “Ready to visit your daddy?” 

JJ replied with a toothy grin. It made all three of them break out into thousand-watt smiles. 

“Thanks, Joel, for taking care of him,” Dina said. 

“Always.” 

“See you ‘round.” Ellie waved, as she followed her family out the door. Over her shoulder, “I mean it. You better take him for more nights in the future.” 

With all the conviction in the world, Joel answered, “I swear.”

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for the wait on this one, y’all. My brain has turned to mush ever since Wynonna Earp 4x02 (I highly recommend for some wacky Western supernatural hijinks with amazing wlw content). 
> 
> Drop by to chat on Tumblr at [when-i-have-time](https://when-i-have-time.tumblr.com/)!
> 
> Next Up: JJ turns 1!


End file.
